Baseball drops three of four, Dewald stars in win
The GCSU baseball team struggled to a 1-3 record in their four games this past week, with the lone win featuring an outstanding pitching performance from senior Martin Dewald.
On Tuesday, the team was on the road to face Erskine College in a high scoring game that ended in a tough defeat for the Bobcats with the final score at 21-14.
In the first inning, the Bobcats managed to score two runs. However, the Flying Fleet responded by scoring six runs in the first inning and two in the second to set the score at 8-2. In the third inning, GCSU was able to score two runs and prevent the Flying Feet from scoring. Both teams managed to score a single run the fourth to set the score at 9-5. The Bobcats were then able to pull ahead when they scored three runs in the fifth inning, including a two-run homer from senior infielder Steve Muoio, and two runs in the sixth, giving GCSU a 10-9 lead.
The Flying Fleet then stepped up their game by scoring 11 runs in the seventh, including a three-run homer, to put the game at 20-10 in their favor. GCSU kept fighting with four runs in the eighth, including a two-run RBI from senior first baseman Matt Pitts. However, the Bobcats were unable to overcome the deficit and were defeated 21-14.
“We struggled a great deal on the mound,” head coach Tom Carty said. “Our Achilles heel is our pitching, we came into the game and our pitching just had a slump.”
GCSU suffered two more tough losses this weekend in a three-game series against North Georgia.
In the game that was played on Friday, North Georgia quickly took the lead by scoring three runs in the first inning while the Bobcats were unable to get a run. In the second inning, the Bobcats scored a single run and prevented the Saints from scoring to set the score at 3-1 with the Bobcats trailing.
In the fourth North Georgia pulled in two runs and one run in the seventh to set the score at 6-1 in their advantage. After a scoreless eight inning, the Saints pulled in four more runs in the ninth while the Bobcats added a homer in the ninth, which resulted in a GCSU defeat with the score at 10-2.
The Bobcats and the Saints finished their series with a doubleheader on Saturday, which ended in a split between the two.
In the first game, North Georgia quickly earned a huge lead over GCSU by scoring three runs in the second inning and five more in the third, giving them an 8-0 lead. In the eighth inning, each team scored two runs, the Bobcats coming on RBIs from senior outfielder Sean Harrell and junior infielder Jason Veyna, making the score 10-2 with the Bobcats trailing. The Saints scored two more in the ninth and the game ended in a 12-2 defeat for GCSU.
In the second game of the doubleheader, the Bobcats took the final game of the series when they shut out North Georgia 7-0. The Bobcats scored four runs in the fifth including a solo homer from senior infielder Paul Bordon, to put them ahead at 4-0. In the eight inning, GCSU put three more runs on the scoreboard including a three-run homer from Bordon and the Bobcats took the third game of the series. Dewald hurled a complete-game shutout with 10 strikeouts to shut down the Saints’ offense.
“This is not how we wanted to do in a conference home series,” Carty said. “In the third game we executed pitches better and kept their offense off balance, the only positive about the series is that we didn’t get swept.”
The game that was scheduled to take place at home against Clark Atlanta on Wednesday was postponed to due to rain. The game has been rescheduled for March 30.
The Bobcats are at home this weekend at they face Augusta State in a three-game series, with a doubleheader set for Saturday and the third game Sunday at 1 p.m.
“Hopefully we’ll stay sharp and get our workouts in away from the raindrops,” Carty said. “We’ll get our hitters hitting indoors, our pitchers pitching indoors and improve on the mound to get ready for the weekend.”
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